In the Jing family home, Jing Zeyou's study.
Lin Ruiqing was scolding Jing Zeqian, who stood before her with slumped shoulders, not daring to utter a word in his defense.
"You think you're so clever now? Your sister cares about you so much, and not only do you fail to thank her, but you mock her? What kind of brother are you?!"
Jing Zeqian stood there like a quail, motionless.
"You're so quick to defend your friend, huh? Ten years of friendship, you say? Didn't that end in betrayal too?!" Lin Ruiqing grew increasingly agitated as she spoke: "Yi Yi waited for you all morning, worried you might fall into someone's trap, and how do you repay her?! You accuse her without even asking what happened? Does she owe you something?"
Jing Beicheng hurriedly supported Lin Ruiqing, fearing she might faint from anger. His eyes conveyed severity as he looked at Jing Zeqian.
"You should know who your real family is by now."
Jing Zeqian's face suddenly turned pale. His father's single sentence carried more weight than all of his mother's scolding.
Jing Zeyou stood behind his parents, not speaking up for his brother. He felt that not joining Lin Ruiqing and the others in their criticism was already the greatest concession he could make.
Lin Ruiqing's breathing became rapid. She sat down on the sofa to calm her emotions. "I heard from Zejun that after arguing with you, Yi Yi went straight to the hospital, worried that if too much time passed, they wouldn't be able to detect anything..."
Thinking of Jing Yi's situation, Lin Ruiqing's voice became choked with emotion.
Jing Zeqian felt an indescribable sensation in his heart. He swallowed hard, forcing down the lump in his throat.
Looking at Jing Zeqian's expression, Lin Ruiqing grew increasingly irritated. She waved her hand dismissively, "Forget it, just get out."
Jing Zeqian looked up, bewildered, his eyes slightly red. "Where should I go?" Lin Ruiqing didn't even glance at him, "Wherever you want. Didn't you say you needed to investigate something? Go figure it out before you come back."
Jing Zeqian looked towards Jing Zeyou standing behind Lin Ruiqing, only to receive a helpless expression in return.
His father was even less likely to help him...
Downstairs, Jing Yi and Jing Zejun were watching the newly aired 'Dear Family' reality show. Today was the premiere of the official edited version of the first episode.
Jing Yi kept glancing upstairs.
[Auntie called that fool upstairs quite a while ago. I wonder what they're talking about.]
Jing Zejun asked, "What's wrong?" Jing Yi shook her head but couldn't resist asking, "What do you think they're saying up there?"
The corners of Jing Zejun's mouth turned up. What else could they be doing but holding a criticism session?
At that moment, Jing Zeqian came downstairs with a suitcase, looking dejected. Jing Yi quickly turned her head, pretending to watch the show.
Jing Zejun looked over curiously, "Second brother, where are you going so late?" A flash of schadenfreude crossed his eyes.
Jing Zeqian had just opened his mouth to speak when Lin Ruiqing also came downstairs. "Your second brother needs to go on a business trip for a while."
[Business trip?]
Jing Zeqian looked over at Jing Yi, who still hadn't turned to face him. He smiled bitterly, "Yes, a business trip for a few days."
Jing Yi stole a glance at him and pursed her lips.
[What's this about? He hasn't really been kicked out, has he?]
Lin Ruiqing stood with her arms crossed, watching the person at the door. Ungrateful people need to be sent away for a few days to come to their senses!
"So, I'm off?" Jing Zeqian still hoped someone might ask him to stay, but even Jing Zejun just smiled and said goodbye.
Jing Zeqian could only slink away, dragging his suitcase out of the living room. Uncle Li was outside to open the door for him.
"Uncle Li, I'm leaving."
Uncle Li smiled and bid Jing Zeqian farewell, "Have a safe trip, Young Master Zeqian. The car is waiting for you at the entrance." Jing Zeqian sighed, realizing that truly no one in the house was going to ask him to stay.
However, this commotion did serve to distract from the harm Jiang Miaomiao had caused Jing Zeqian.
Jing Zeqian's slender eyes gleamed with determination. He had to act quickly! Otherwise, he might really lose his place in the family!
More importantly, if he couldn't even enter the house now, how could he apologize to Jing Yi?
Meanwhile, after Jing Zeqian left, Jing Yi finally peeked towards the door. After a moment's thought, she still felt some sympathy, "Auntie, it's so late now. Why not let Second Brother leave tomorrow?"
Jing Yi had more or less figured out that this wasn't really a business trip, but rather Lin Ruiqing and Jing Beicheng's way of standing up for her.
Lin Ruiqing sat down next to her to watch the show together. Hearing Jing Yi's words, she gently patted the back of her hand.
"Why feel sorry for that boy? If we don't teach him a lesson, he'll keep being so self-righteous! Unable to tell right from wrong!" The thought of Jing Zeqian still angered her, "Besides, he's a grown man. What's there to be afraid of? Don't worry."
Jing Yi glanced at the door once more, then gave up. She was helpless in this situation too.
At the same time, in Jiang Miaomiao's apartment.
A man sat on the sofa, his hands resting on his knees, eyes narrowed. "You're saying you failed?"
Jiang Miaomiao sat nervously beside him, "I was about to succeed when his fake sister suddenly burst in..."
After changing clothes, Jiang Miaomiao had planned to find another opportunity, as the party had just begun. But when she came out, she found that both Jing Zeqian and Jing Yi had disappeared, and even Jing Zejun was nowhere to be seen.
Her assistant told her that the two seemed to have had a big argument and left one after the other.
"I don't want to hear these excuses!" the man scolded harshly, his tone seemingly frightening Jiang Miaomiao.
The man's face was as dark as storm clouds before a downpour. He raised his head, suppressing the urge to vent his emotions, and asked, "What about the contents of the glass?"
"...It all spilled out."
At least she wasn't stupid enough to leave evidence in someone else's hands, but it seemed Jiang Miaomiao was no longer a useful pawn.
He didn't believe that Jing Zeqian hadn't noticed anything unusual about Jiang Miaomiao during this time. If they didn't succeed now, they probably never would.
"The fake sister of Jing Zeqian you mentioned, is that Jing Yi?" Jiang Miaomiao looked up at the man, "Bo Qi, do you know her?"
The man's gaze deepened as he recalled the girl at the Jing family party, the one Jing Zeqian had stopped from drinking.
Perhaps he needed to change his target.
Seeing the man remain silent, Jiang Miaomiao gently pushed his arm, "Bo Qi, what are you thinking about?"
The man's eyes flickered, and he put on the mask that Jiang Miaomiao was accustomed to seeing. He smiled and said, "Nothing, I was just thinking about how to introduce you to my parents."
Jiang Miaomiao's worried eyes lit up, "Really? You're not angry that I failed?"
The man took Jiang Miaomiao's hands, gently caressing them, "How could I be angry with you? You were only trying to help me. If this attempt didn't work, I'll just think of another way."
Jiang Miaomiao leaned gently into the man's embrace, saying softly, "Bo Qi, you're so good to me."
Where Jiang Miaomiao couldn't see, the corners of the man's mouth curved into a mocking smile, but his voice remained as gentle as ever, "Of course. How could I bear to let you and the baby suffer with me?"
Jiang Miaomiao's face was filled with happiness, as if she had already envisioned their future together.
